Trial court's grant of leniency to defendant is error resulting in an unauthorized sentence.
Cite as
1998 DJDAR 5553Published
Feb. 8, 2000Filing Date
May 26, 1998
ORDER
Review Granted PEOPLE, Respondent, v. JERRY GARCIA, Appellant No. S069783 C.A. 2nd, Div. 7, No. B113080 California Supreme Court Filed May 27, 1998
Appellant's petition for review GRANTED.
[Editor's Note - For your convenience we reprint below the Daily Journal's Ruling Column brief which summarized the earlier decision of the lower court.]
CRIMINAL LAW AND PROCEDURE
Trial court's grant of leniency to defendant is error resulting in an unauthorized sentence.
The C.A. 2nd has ruled that a trial court's grant of leniency to a defendant that was a 15-year recidivist was error resulting in a unauthorized sentence.
In June 1996, Barbara Gantt's residence was burglarized. Gantt found Jerry Garcia's wallet and driver's license among papers on her floor while cleaning up from the burglary. In September 1996, Garcia was arrested after he Garcia bicycled out of Grace Kobel's driveway with two bags of her personal property. Garcia admitted to the two burglaries and four others. During trial, a prior felony, five "strikes" and three prior prison term enhancements were found on Garcia's record. Garcia was convicted of two first degree burglaries. The trial court disagreed with imposing a sentence under the three strikes law. The government contended that as a 15-year recidivist, Garcia should be sentenced to the three strikes mandated term. Garcia was sentenced to a 30-year term for one burglary and 16 months for the second burglary after striking all the alleged strikes. The government contended that the trial court's effort at granting leniency constituted an unauthorized sentence.
The C.A. 2nd reversed and remanded. People v. Garcia held that a trial court has the discretion to strike one or more prior convictions as to some, but not all counts. Garcia did not properly take into account the three strikes law requirement that trial courts impose harsh terms for repeat offenders sentencing consecutively. There was no approval by the government in this case to impose a lighter sentence. The trial court improperly imposed a sentence outside the requirements of that mandated by the three strikes law. Therefore, the granting of leniency by the trial court constituted an unauthorized sentence.
People v. Garcia, C.A. 2nd, No. B113080, filed March 18, 1998, by Woods, J.
The full text of this case appears in 98 Daily Journal D.A.R. 2715, March 20, 1998.
Review Granted PEOPLE, Respondent, v. JERRY GARCIA, Appellant No. S069783 C.A. 2nd, Div. 7, No. B113080 California Supreme Court Filed May 27, 1998
Appellant's petition for review GRANTED.
George, Chief Justice
Mosk, Associate Justice
Kennard, Associate Justice
Werdegar, Associate Justice
Chin, Associate Justice
Brown, Associate Justice
[Editor's Note - For your convenience we reprint below the Daily Journal's Ruling Column brief which summarized the earlier decision of the lower court.]
CRIMINAL LAW AND PROCEDURE
Trial court's grant of leniency to defendant is error resulting in an unauthorized sentence.
The C.A. 2nd has ruled that a trial court's grant of leniency to a defendant that was a 15-year recidivist was error resulting in a unauthorized sentence.
In June 1996, Barbara Gantt's residence was burglarized. Gantt found Jerry Garcia's wallet and driver's license among papers on her floor while cleaning up from the burglary. In September 1996, Garcia was arrested after he Garcia bicycled out of Grace Kobel's driveway with two bags of her personal property. Garcia admitted to the two burglaries and four others. During trial, a prior felony, five "strikes" and three prior prison term enhancements were found on Garcia's record. Garcia was convicted of two first degree burglaries. The trial court disagreed with imposing a sentence under the three strikes law. The government contended that as a 15-year recidivist, Garcia should be sentenced to the three strikes mandated term. Garcia was sentenced to a 30-year term for one burglary and 16 months for the second burglary after striking all the alleged strikes. The government contended that the trial court's effort at granting leniency constituted an unauthorized sentence.
The C.A. 2nd reversed and remanded. People v. Garcia held that a trial court has the discretion to strike one or more prior convictions as to some, but not all counts. Garcia did not properly take into account the three strikes law requirement that trial courts impose harsh terms for repeat offenders sentencing consecutively. There was no approval by the government in this case to impose a lighter sentence. The trial court improperly imposed a sentence outside the requirements of that mandated by the three strikes law. Therefore, the granting of leniency by the trial court constituted an unauthorized sentence.
People v. Garcia, C.A. 2nd, No. B113080, filed March 18, 1998, by Woods, J.
The full text of this case appears in 98 Daily Journal D.A.R. 2715, March 20, 1998.
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